Truth is Jim and I are totally jazzed (probably a bad expression for me to use–Listen to our Next Podcast) to be going to GABF this year. Not only will we be yucking it up with brewers and bloggers alike, but we will also have an opportunity to catch up with our cousin David who lives in Denver. A mini family reunion of sorts.

I think the one event I am actually looking forward to more than any other is the Rare Beer tasting. This will be a great event with an absolutely impressive line up of brews on tap. This isn’t just beer we can’t get, its beer no one gets. They are experiments and just funky one offs that the breweries will be pouring Friday afternoon at the Wyncoop Brewery. One other awesome thing is that all the proceeds from this event go to “Pints for Prostates” a philanthropic organization dedicated to improvements in men’s prostate health. So there you have it. Proof that drinking beer is good for men’s prostate health. Oh, you were wondering about the beer? Try not to drool on your keyboard…

Avery Quinquepartite: Latin for “consisting of five parts,” Quinquepartite is a Barrel-Aged Sour Ale blended from beers aged in five of the best oak barrels in the Avery cellars: two Cabernet Sauvignon barrels, along with one each of Port, Chardonnay and Zinfandel barrels. The beer achieves a pungent balance, mingling the exotic aromas and flavors of Brettanomyces wild yeast with a citric acid-like tartness.

Bell’s 2004 Eccentric Ale: Bell’s Eccentric Ale is a specialty spiced strong ale brewed yearly in honor of Eccentric Day, a wild party held at the brewery in the beginning of December. Each year the recipe changes a bit and this 2004 incarnation of the brew is the only one of its kind. Eleven different malts make up the base of this beer and are balanced by the spiciness of a hefty addition of coriander, juniper berries and caraway seeds. The beer is rounded out with an earthiness that comes from roasted pumpkins and sweet potatoes.

Big Sky Barrel-Aged Ivan the Terrible: Ivan the Terrible Imperial Stout is brewed in the traditional style using English hops and the finest American malt. Its aroma and flavor balances well between esters of dried fruit and roasted cocoa, with a slight Bourbon presence. This brew is barrel aged and bottle conditioned.

Samuel Adams Kosmic Mother Funk: Kosmic Mother Funk has been aged for 12 months in oak barrels at the Samuel Adams Boston Brewery. The ale was originally fermented with Belgian yeast, which undergoes a secondary fermentation in wooden tuns (130 bbls). Wild yeast and different bacteria in the barrels contribute a unique spicy, fruity, tart character to the fermentation. The porous character of the oak also allows air to slowly seep into the beer during aging, smoothing out any harsh flavors in the beer.

Brooklyn Reinschweinsgebot: This is a brown ale aged for nine months in Woodford Reserve Bourbon barrels. This beer has then been “fat-washed” with fat rendered from Benton’s Country Smokehouse Bacon. Allan Benton also produced a smoked malt for this beer and a special strong ale was brewed from it. The fat-washed/barrel-aged beer was blended with the bacon-smoked beer and the blend was re-fermented in the bottle with Champagne yeast. Only 20 cases were ever made. This beer has only been publically served at special dinners at Thomas Keller’s Per Se and Tom Colicchio’s Craft New York and Craft Atlanta.

Cascade Noyeaux Sour Ale: Cascade Noyeaux is a white Port barrel sour aged strong blond ale. It is cellared on raspberries and noyeaux, the roasted nut of the apricot pit. Cascade Brewing made its first sour fruit beers in 2007, when it produced ales from blackberries, cherries and apricots. The company recently expanded to keep up with demand for its sour ales, opening a barrel house that will hold 500 barrels of beer as they age.

Cigar City White Oak-Aged Jai Alai India Pale Ale: White Oak IPA is an American IPA with big notes of macaroon, vanilla, navel oranges, southern pine and apricots in the aroma and flavor profile. Dark copper in color, it starts out dry with citrus and pine, then hints of balancing caramel sweetness and moderate notes of macaroon and vanilla intervene briefly. The beer closes with slightly acidic apricot notes with lingering notes of dry citrus and peach with a suggestion of dill in the finish.

Deschutes Double Black Butte Porter XXII: First brewed to celebrate Deschute’s 20th anniversary, this extreme cousin of Black Butte Porter is back for a second encore performance. Generation XXII melds Theo’s cocoa nibs, whiskey barrel aging and other flights of brewer whimsy into a masterpiece 22 years in the making.

Dogfish Head Namaste: Namaste is a Belgian-style white made with dried organic orange slices, fresh cut lemongrass and a bit of coriander. Namaste was originally brewed at our brewpub with our friend Leo from Birra del Borgo in Italy.

Founders Nemesis 2010: A dark barley wine that pours black with a subtle mahogany hue. Brewed with five malts and no shortage of hops for a pleasantly bitter booming flavor. Roasty and toasty with a multitude of tastes that melt on your tongue.

Goose Island Bourbon Barrel Coffee Stout: Bourbon County Brand Coffee Stout is made with coffee from Goose Island’s neighbor, Intelligentsia Coffee and Tea. The addition of their Black Cat Espresso to Goose Island’s Bourbon County Brand Coffee Stout adds yet another layer of complexity to the charred oak, chocolate, vanilla, caramel and smoke flavors already present in the beer.

Great Divide Flanders Red: Great Divide’s Flemish Style Red is meant to be a sessionable, yet complex sour ale, inspired by the Flemish brewing tradition. The primary fermentation is 100% “wild” utilizing Brettanomyces yeast and various souring bacteria. What emerges after spending months in an oak barrel is a nuanced beer bursting with aromatic notes of dark fruit and spicy “wild” character. The beer finishes with an acetic character and a pleasant tartness.

Jolly Pumpkin Biere de Goord: Biere de Goord, a saison brewed with kale, pumpkin seeds, pumpkin and green tea, was created by Jolly Pumpkin to help raise awareness about prostate cancer and generate funds for the Pints for Prostates campaign. The beer was aged in oak and bottle conditioned. This is an extremely limited edition beer brewed to mark National Prostate Cancer Awareness Month in September. Besides the Denver Rare Beer Tasting, the only way to taste this beer is to order it through The Rare Beer of the Month Club or visit one of the Jolly Pumpkin locations in Michigan.

New Belgium Tart Lychee: Felix, New Belgium’s light base beer, is acidified for more than 2 years in oak barrels. Then 95% of Felix with 300 crushed Ceylon cinnamon sticks and 5 percent Lychee Fruit (think apple, banana and peeled grapes all together!) are blended for a week. Pours a very cloudy orangey-pink haze, with a whisper of foam. The aroma is very citric, lemonade, grapes, bananas and lychee. The flavor is both prickly sour, somewhat sweet and finishes tart and dry. This is just the second small test batch made of this beer.

Pike Tripel Kriek: Pike Tripel Kriek is a blend of Pike Monks Uncle Tripel and 60 pounds of organic Washington grown Bing cherries. The ale is re-fermented with the addition of Brettanomyces in two used Bordeaux blend French oak wine barrels from the Mark Ryan Winery and aged for one year. Tripel Kriek was first brewed for the 20th Anniversary celebration of the Pike Brewing Co. in October 2009. This is the last keg of this celebration beer.

Russian River Temptation: Aged in French oak wine barrels for 12 months with distinct characteristics of fruit and subtle oak. Temptation is a blonde ale aged in French oak chardonnay barrels with Brettanomyces. Flavors of wine and oak absorb into the brew throughout its aging. Temptation is re-fermented in the bottle to create its carbonation – a process commonly used to make fine Champagne and sparkling wine. Spent yeast forms a thin layer of sediment to remain in the bottle.

Sierra Nevada Brandy Barrel-Aged Belgian Trippel: Sierra Nevada Brandy Barrel-Aged Belgian Trippel is a Belgian-style trippel aged for five months in California brandy barrels. Made with an authentic abbey-style yeast strain, the beer is full of flavor, but surprisingly light-bodied and drinkable. A balanced beer with a mild, bready character from the malt, combined with subtle floral flavors from the use of European hops. The Belgian yeast strain produces a complex bouquet of spicy and fruity flavors and aromas. The brief barrel aging adds to the beer’s flavor and complexity with subtle notes of vanilla, wine and a touch of a toffee finish.

Stone Imperial Russian Stout GK’s Mad Man Mix: Stone Imperial Russian Stout GK’s Mad Man Mix was made for the 10th Anniversary of Stone Imperial Russian Stout. A special blend of vintages from the last ten years, along with a Bourbon barrel aged version of the 2008 vintage. The resulting mixture of this ominous black nectar was then hijacked by a musically-minded maniac who infused it with chipotle and sage, along with a portion of Stone Sublimely Self-Righteous Ale. The resulting mash-up is a devastatingly complex, slightly spicy, hugely flavorful 10.5% cuvee de GK. There are only a few kegs of this beer mix-tape in existence.

Three Floyds Dark Lord: Dark Lord is Three Floyds Brewing version of a Russian imperial stout. It is intense, fanatical and “not normal” for the style. Dark Lord’s appearance is similar to motor oil with a brown head, the finished beer itself is viscous and opaque, a black hole in color. Aroma has been described as dark cocoa, molasses, vanilla, while the Dark Lord’s mouth feel is thick and creamy that coats your palate. Demonic tastes of chocolate fudge brownies, raspberries, blue berries, raisins, figs with a slight alcohol Bourbon presence in the finish but not overbearing in any way whatsoever. Dark Lord was originally made in 2003 and is painstakingly brewed with American/Canadian base malt, English specialty malt, American hops, Intelligentsia coffee, Mexican vanilla, and molasses. Dark Lord is only available 1 day a year, “Dark Lord Day,” a beer festival which occurs at Three Floyds Brewery & Brewpub.

Upstream Farmhouse Surprise: Farmhouse Surprise is a unique blend of Upstream Brewing’s 2008 Gueuze, 2008 Flanders Red and 2009 Framboise de Brune. All of the blended beers were aged in French oak cabernet barrels. You will discover that the aroma displays the big earth character with a variety of wild Belgian micro flora, which are responsible for the sour character in this beer with a touch of sweet raspberry. However, there is more to be found than just sourness; sweet malt, citrus, and even a touch of honey are the backbone of this untamed beer. Once you try it, you just might love it. Once you love it, there’s no going back; you’ll be hooked! But hold on to the memory because this beer will never happen again.

Weyerbacher 2005 Decadence: Weyerbacher Decadence is a very limited production spiced amber ale, brewed only once in 2005 to celebrate the brewery’s 10th Anniversary. Decadence was brewed with honey, cardamom and gentian. Very little hops were used contributing to a barely perceptible 17 IBU. Even though those IBU have since faded somewhat, the beer remains quite balanced with the powerful bitterness of the gentian still shining through. Time has allowed the honey to really come forward.

Wynkoop Orville.33: Orville.33, a Brettanomycess fermented golden ale, is one of the three beers Wynkoop head brewer Andy Brown has blended to create Orville, a new barrel-aged sour beer that will be served at the brewpub during GABF week in Denver. This is the only keg in existence of Orville.33.

Envy! I have fond memories of quiet Sundays spent at the Wynkoop and the Tattered Cover bookstore nearby. Buffet brunch at the Wynkoop accompanied by a pint or two, followed by some quiet hours at Tattered Cover sitting in one the overstuffed armchairs reading the out-of-town newspapers, drinking coffee and eating chocolate-covered espresso beans. End it with dinner, some more pints and a round of pool (or two) at the Wynkoop.